Friday, April 25, 2008

What would you do if you suddenly couldn't remember the last 4 years of your life?

Naomi is having a typical day when she falls down a flight of stairs at school--and gets amnesia. Now, she's missing the last four years of her life--years where many things happened. She has to be told about her parents' divorce and her mother's remarriage. She has to be told about her boyfriend and her best friend. And while people are trying to fill the holes in her memory, they also tell her how she should be acting, feeling, and talking.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Conor has always had his eyes on the sky. Being born in a hot air balloon will do that to you. From an early age, he has wanted to fly and be free. It seems he will have that opportunity to discover how to fly.

Then tragedy strikes--he witnesses a murder. Not just any murder--the murder of his king and his mentor. The murderer then locks him away in prison with no one knowing what happened to him. Conor must find a way to conquer the sky and rescue himself and his family from danger that lurks around every corner.

A fascinating read, staged in Ireland around the time of the discovery of flight. Conor is an energetic and determined teen thrown into some harrowing and frustrating circumstances. This book is action-packed!

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Laine has not always had an easy life. When she was young, she wanted to be Leah's best friend--Leah being the most popular girl in school. And magically, it seems to happen! Laine is pulled into the popular circle--much to the dismay of everyone else.

But Laine and Leah share a secret. One that Laine fears will come out. And as they age, Leah and Laine grow apart--and Leah becomes more dangerous. Leah's secret is even worse than the one they share. Leah's self-destructive behavior pushes both girls closer to the edge...until Leah jumps off. Her death begins Laine's recollections of their childhood together, and the lessons she's learned from a dead girl.

This book centers around the Zing family, and what the Zing family centers itself around. Each main character is followed by the third-person narrator's voice, yet it is told in the alternating style as other books are.

You see Fancy, the oldest Zing child, with her husband Radcliffe and their daughter Cassie. Fancy is a writer and aspires to write something better than wilderness romances.

You see Marbie, the other Zing child, who is dating and living with Nathaniel and Listen Taylor. Listen discovers a spell book the first week she lives with Marbie, and starts to follow all the spells. And what's strange--they seem to work!

Cassie's 2nd grade teacher also plays an important role in this book--Cath Murphy. Inbetween all of these is the story of Fancy and Marbie's parents--how they met, and what brought them together.